Final Fantasy VII Age of the Cetra
by Crests of Regalia
Summary: It is said that the Cetra split in two, one half becoming the settlers and later humans of the planet while the second half were killed by a great catastrophe and the struggle for survival that came after it...but what was that catastrophic event?


**Chapter One - Rained Soaked Soils**

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_A time when you and I will be as one._

_A time will come when you and I will walk upon the rain soaked soils once more, when you and I will emerge from the depths of space to greet the children of the young and otherwise obscure planet._

_Will you be ready to serve your mother then?_

Within the darkness the shrouded figure shifted uncomfortably, the cold and unfeeling air about it tearing mercilessly into the delicate and pale flesh of young and almost childlike limbs. The words, housed in the depths of its mind continued to repeat themselves and yet not once did it come any closer and thus the figure could only assume that its mother had yet to find the obscure and nameless planet in which she sought.

Halfway between sleep, the figure pursed its lips and allowed its azure blue eyes to open to mere slits. It had long since adjusted to the eternal darkness (for its mother had warned it long ago that no light would penetrate this mythical place) and yet within inside a deep yearning remained. In the crevices of its darkened heart the figure craved nothing more than to return to the world of the light, to once again touch the sun kissed blossoms and the rain soaked soils.

Time was of no import in this light-deprived world, time failed to exist (or so it was assumed) in a world where the sun did not rise and set, in a world where no planet orbited a large and fiery star. Dismal was the life of those that lurked here; unclothed, uncared for and in a timeless sleep…in ways, one might argue that it was nothing short of a very impressive prison.

There was no escape from this dark world, that much was certain and well known to those imprisoned inside it; yet, this figure's mother had sworn that when the time was right then she would descend upon her child and would release it into the world of light once more.

Such a promise enabled the figure to forget about the cruel chill upon its flesh and instead, the figure fed off its own dreams of freedom from this abominable plane. At times it grew impatient while at other points it resigned itself to wait for its mother's soft call – how long it may have had to wait was of no importance in the given circumstances provided that its mother kept her promise.

_A time will come when you and I will walk upon the rain soaked soils once more…_

The stars never lied, that much was a certainty amongst those who lived within the Northern City. The scribe's gaze remained transfixed upon the glittering constellations above him and with every twinkle the grimace upon his weatherworn features grew deeper while the pursed lips grew thinner. All the signs in which he received were pointing towards a series of events that would result in a great catastrophe yet even as he stared into the depths of space he was reminded of one very important issue that related to his people.

Tearing his eyes away from the miracle that lay above, he released a sigh and placed his withered hand against the smooth interior of the unusually large shell in which he lived. His shell was one of many that had been carefully selected as the homes of his people – said shells had been a source of fascination to them when they had first arrived and thus they had taken the measures to harvest those that had been abandoned for their own use.

Still, as he looked out upon the 'city' that he lived in he couldn't help but mourn for the loss of those who had grown weary of their travels…It was when they had reached this planet that nearly half of his kind had separated from the others to find a more suitable life for themselves, this planet had brought great misfortune upon them to say the least and yet how could he blame the planet who had not asked for them to settle?

A small 'hmph' escaped from between his lips and he moved away from the window, turning his attentions towards the simple bed that lay near by, oddly placed in the spiral shape house for he had not found the time to craft the bed into a more appropriate shape for the house (to be frank however, he failed to see what was so bad about a rectangular bed anyway).

How long had it been since he slept?

With an arched brow he shrugged off his over robes and hung them over the chair near by the fire before calmly slipping under the covers of his bed and as he was caressed by the soft sheets his expression became almost serene, how very relieved he was to at last find some rest as he closed his eyes and succumbed to sleep…

"_A time will come when you and I will walk upon the rain soaked soils once more."_

_The voice was gentle and yet should one listen to it from off side they could detect the hint of danger within it. Whatever the voice may have belonged to remained to be seen but he knew at once that it represented nothing except trouble for him at this precise moment in time._

"_Will you be ready to serve your mother then?" The voice persisted and somewhere within the darkness a soft moan responded to her 'loving' voice, he could only grimace as this as well._

_Nevertheless, as the feminine voice continued to comfort whatever it might have been focused upon the darkness began to shift and in its place stood the infamous city, the large white shells covered in grotesque shadows – from within the sounds of shouts and screams of terror while flames raged across the once emerald green grass and strange and exotic monsters pursued those who were unfortunate enough to be outside._

"_A time when you and I will be as one."_

_The heat was immense and yet through the heat distorted air and scarlet rain a set of azure blue eyes observed the flaming city and blood soaked streets with pleasure…_

His eyes snapped open abruptly and with a desperate gasp for air he sat up, placing a hand to his now cooled forehead in order to battle against the pounding within his head. Gritting his teeth, he remained seated within his bed for quite sometime until at last he released a shaken sigh and allowed his gaze to warily turn towards the window nearby.

How long had he been asleep?

Clasping his free hand to his heart he pursed his lips and listened to the rain beat against the top of his shell-like home. Evidently during his sleep it had started and yet the mere sound of the rain made his insides churn as he was reminded of the blood spattered shells of the city, the shells that were often spattered with mud in such rain as this.

For a while he simply closed his eyes, his thoughts a mass of confusion and emotions in turmoil. Who had those eyes belonged to and what about that voice? It had been a long time since he had last been as troubled as this for he was usually rather calm but considering the signs revealed in the stars and his dream – could it have been a premonition?

He could only give a silent prayer to the planet that pulsed with life beneath his feet and made his way unsteadily towards the door, pulling his over robes and his slippers on as he reached for his walking stick. In the given circumstances his better half advised him to find a way to distract his thoughts so that he might rest again and for that he needed to walk.

Clearing his throat, the elderly scribe opened the door and observed the heavy rain that now descended upon the city and fed the soils beneath his feet. He failed to see how rain filled with blood would be as nurturing but alas he could only shake his head and with a small sniff he stepped out of the doorway and proceeded down the walk ways that he knew all so well.

With each rain drop that beat against his head he continued to assess the premonition and signs in which he had received, he had known that they all pointed to catastrophe but this was far beyond what he could have imagined.

"A time when you and I will walk across the rain soaked soils once more." He repeated, his voice hoarse with lack of use (for he was often a silent man). He shook his head and gazed towards one of the flower beds that had been created by the druid like magic of his people. The blossoms had closed over for the night and yet they still held an air of beauty about them but should that voice come they would go up in flames, in ways he wished that he could have heard all the words of this approaching nemesis.

_Will you be ready to serve your mother then?_

The response that had been given to that had not been verbal, rather it had been animalistic…was it another of those exotic creatures he had seen?

Another prayer was sent towards the planet at that moment and he fought hard against the tears that threatened to rise up from the depths of his soul. He was a wanderer, that may be true, but he had no wish to see a planet as beautiful as this be destroyed by a foul hand.

His old limbs seemed to creak as he took a seat upon one of the shell benches and turned his gaze upwards towards the stars once more. As with before they seemed to twinkle at an unusual rate, almost seeming to 'flash' more frequently in the hope that someone might heed their warning.

"Where will you arrive?" He whispered darkly, clenching the fist of his left hand as he rested it in his lap and considered the locations that were most likely to be the source of such corruption – one prime source that came to mind were the people who had deserted his kind as they settled upon the land but surely it was not that, it had only been recent!

Shifting his gaze towards the flowerbed, he admired the dormant beauty that would soon arise as the sun caressed the velvet like petals in the dawn – yes, even though it might have been dark and the times dangerous flowers and other objects of beauty still managed to flourish. His thoughts were hesitant though as he continued to watch the flowers and waited for the tell tale signs of dawn – he would be glad when the night resided and he would be able to see things more clearly again…


End file.
